Inside the matchupOakland’s Reggie Hamilton might be the best scorer the Broncos have seen this season. The Grizzlies’ senior point guard scored 41 Saturday in a 82-80 win at Valparaiso and 31 in an 85-73 loss Tuesday at Arizona. Hamilton exemplifies an Oakland team that is exceptional offensively — averaging about 80 points per game — but sometimes finds its rest on defense and doesn’t have much of a bench. Its five starters all play at least 31 minutes a night.

The Grizzlies aren’t big, other than center Corey Petros — whom the Broncos recruited briefly in the same class they wound up taking Matt Stainbrook — which should allow WMU to start Demetrius Ward out of position at power forward again. That’s the Broncos’ best option, as long as Flenard Whitfield is out, because it lets WMU bring Shayne Whittington off the bench behind Matt Stainbrook or, if the matchup is right, to play its two bigs together. WMU’s bench is any deeper than Oakland’s right now, with Whitfield, David Brown and Brandon Pokley out.

PredictionTo beat Oakland, WMU has to keep pace offensively, because the Grizzlies are going to score. The Broncos plan to try to grind this out, get to free-throw line and win in the paint. At home, even short-handed, maybe that works. But Oakland will spread the Broncos’ defense and push the pace. The Grizzlies are used to having limited depth. WMU isn’t.